We broke out the Christmas CDs this morning. Mabel laid them out carefully so they covered an entire table, then sorted them into stacks of the most important. Here’s today’s top ten. Expect the seasonal tone to become more sentimental as the holiday draws nearly.

1. The Chipmunks: Christmas with the Chipmunks (the 1950s/60s version of Alvin et al.) and A Very Merry Chipmuck (from 1994, and more in debt to the Chuck Jones chipmunk treatment).

2. The Rat Pack: Christmas with The Rat Pack, Dean Martin: Making Spirits Bright and A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra.

3. The Fleshtones: Stocking Stuffer.

4. Ella Fitgerald’s Christmas.

5. The Macaroons: Let’s Go Coconuts.

6. Vince Guaraldi Trio: A Charlie Brown Christmas.

7. The Archies Christmas Album featuring Betty & Veronica.

(Local-band, soul/R&B and other Christmas music lists forthcoming. Just getting started here; the tree lighting on New Haven Green was just last night.)